December 12, 2018 (Wednesday)
(From the Cambridge Bible Commentary:) This Psalm, as has already been remarked, is a companion to the preceding one. It may well have been composed by the same poet: at any rate it belongs to the same period. It is in the main a confession of the faithlessness and ingratitude which had marked every step of Israel’s history, a confession which is the fitting preface to a prayer for the restoration of the nation.
Psalm 106
New International Version (NIV)
I. PRAISE THE LORD FOR HIS UNFAILING GOODNESS (1-5)
1 Praise the Lord.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
2 Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord
or fully declare his praise?
3 Blessed are those who act justly,
who always do what is right.
4 Remember me, Lord, when you show favor to your people,
come to my aid when you save them,
5 that I may enjoy the prosperity of your chosen ones,
that I may share in the joy of your nation
and join your inheritance in giving praise.
II. WE CONFESS OUR SINFUL HISTORY (6-39)
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New International Version (NIV)
I. PRAISE THE LORD FOR HIS UNFAILING GOODNESS (1-5)
1 Praise the Lord.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
2 Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord
or fully declare his praise?
3 Blessed are those who act justly,
who always do what is right.
4 Remember me, Lord, when you show favor to your people,
come to my aid when you save them,
5 that I may enjoy the prosperity of your chosen ones,
that I may share in the joy of your nation
and join your inheritance in giving praise.
II. WE CONFESS OUR SINFUL HISTORY (6-39)
6 We have sinned, even as our ancestors did;
we have done wrong and acted wickedly.A. We murmured at the Red Sea
7 When our ancestors were in Egypt,
they gave no thought to your miracles;
they did not remember your many kindnesses,
and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
to make his mighty power known.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
he led them through the depths as through a desert.
10 He saved them from the hand of the foe;
from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them.
11 The waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them survived.
12 Then they believed his promises
and sang his praise.
B. We murmured for flesh to eat
13 But they soon forgot what he had done
and did not wait for his plan to unfold.
14 In the desert they gave in to their craving;
in the wilderness they put God to the test.
15 So he gave them what they asked for,
but sent a wasting disease among them.
C. We were jealous of Moses and Aaron (16-18)
16 In the camp they grew envious of Moses
and of Aaron, who was consecrated to the Lord.
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it buried the company of Abiram.
18 Fire blazed among their followers;
a flame consumed the wicked.
D. We made an idol and worshiped it (19-23)
19 At Horeb they made a calf
and worshiped an idol cast from metal.
20 They exchanged their glorious God
for an image of a bull, which eats grass.
21 They forgot the God who saved them,
who had done great things in Egypt,
22 miracles in the land of Ham
and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
23 So he said he would destroy them–
had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach before him
to keep his wrath from destroying them.
E. We were cowards and refused to possess the land (24-27)
24 Then they despised the pleasant land;
they did not believe his promise.
25 They grumbled in their tents
and did not obey the Lord.
26 So he swore to them with uplifted hand
that he would make them fall in the wilderness,
27 make their descendants fall among the nations
and scatter them throughout the lands.
F. We worshiped idols with Moabites (28-31)
28 They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor
and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods;
29 they aroused the Lord’s anger by their wicked deeds,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened,
and the plague was checked.
31 This was credited to him as righteousness
for endless generations to come.
G. We murmured at Meribah (32-33)
32 By the waters of Meribah they angered the Lord,
and trouble came to Moses because of them;
33 for they rebelled against the Spirit of God,
and rash words came from Moses’ lips.
H. We disobeyed you after we settled Canaan (34-39)
34 They did not destroy the peoples
as the Lord had commanded them,
35 but they mingled with the nations
and adopted their customs.
36 They worshiped their idols,
which became a snare to them.
37 They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to false gods.
38 They shed innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
and the land was desecrated by their blood.
39 They defiled themselves by what they did;
by their deeds they prostituted themselves.
I. Our history is one of disobedience, punishment, and restoration (40-46)
40 Therefore the Lord was angry with his people
and abhorred his inheritance.
41 He gave them into the hands of the nations,
and their foes ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them
and subjected them to their power.
43 Many times he delivered them,
but they were bent on rebellion
and they wasted away in their sin.
44 Yet he took note of their distress
when he heard their cry;
45 for their sake he remembered his covenant
and out of his great love he relented.
46 He caused all who held them captive
to show them mercy.
III. PLEASE FORGIVE US, LORD OUR GOD (47)
47 Save us, Lord our God,
and gather us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
IV. BLESSED BE THE GOD OF ISRAEL (48)
48 Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise the Lord.
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An Evening Prayer
C. Maud Battersby and Charles H. Gabriel
1915
If I have wounded any soul today,
If I have caused one foot to go astray,
If I have walked in my own willful way,
Dear Lord, forgive.
If I have uttered idle words or vain,
If I have turned aside from want or pain,
Lest I offend some other through the strain,
Dear Lord, forgive.
Forgive these sins I have confessed to Thee,
Forgive the secret sins I do not see,
Guide me, love me and my keeper be,
Dear Lord, forgive…
SUMMARY OF PSALM 106
(Cambridge Bible Commentary)
1-5. The Psalmist prefaces his Psalm of penitence with a call to praise Jehovah for that unfailing goodness which is the ground of Israel’s hope in its present extremity; and with a prayer that he himself may be privileged to see and share in the restoration of Jehovah’s people.
6. The main purpose of the Psalm is here stated;–the confession of the constant sin of Israel throughout its history. The acknowledgement that the nation does not deserve the mercy for which it prays is the primary condition of forgiveness and restoration to God’s favour.
7-12. The first instance of Israel’s sin; their unbelief and murmuring at the Red Sea.
13-15. A second instance of Israel’s sin, in murmuring for flesh
16-18. A third sin; jealousy of the authority of Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16).
19-23. A fourth sin; the worship of the calf (Exodus 32; Deuteronomy 9:8 ff.).
24-27. A fifth instance of Israel’s sin; their unbelief and cowardice on the return of the spies (Numbers 13:14).
28-31. A sixth instance; the sin of participating in the abominations of Moabite worship.
32, 33. A seventh sin; the murmuring at Meribah (Numbers 20:1-13). It is perhaps placed last as a climax, because in this case Moses was involved by Israel’s sin. The faith and patience of the leader who had endured so long gave way at last.
34-39. The continued disobedience of Israel even after the Entry into Canaan. Neglecting the command to exterminate the Canaanites they became infected by their abominations.
40-46. The alternations of chastisement, pardon, restoration, and relapse in the course of Israel’s history. As in Nehemiah 9:26 ff., the primary reference is to the period of the judges; but doubtless the verses are intended to be a summary survey of the characteristics of the whole course of Israel’s history, leading up to the prayer for restoration in Psalm 106:47.
47. This prayer is the point to which the long confession of national sin, from Psalm 106:6 onward, has been leading up. ‘We have sinned, often and grievously; we are bearing the just punishment of our sins; but we confess our guilt; Thy lovingkindness is inexhaustible, once more bring us to our own land, that we may fulfil the purpose of our calling.’
48. Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel,
C. Maud Battersby and Charles H. Gabriel
1915
If I have wounded any soul today,
If I have caused one foot to go astray,
If I have walked in my own willful way,
Dear Lord, forgive.
If I have uttered idle words or vain,
If I have turned aside from want or pain,
Lest I offend some other through the strain,
Dear Lord, forgive.
Forgive these sins I have confessed to Thee,
Forgive the secret sins I do not see,
Guide me, love me and my keeper be,
Dear Lord, forgive…
(Cambridge Bible Commentary)
1-5. The Psalmist prefaces his Psalm of penitence with a call to praise Jehovah for that unfailing goodness which is the ground of Israel’s hope in its present extremity; and with a prayer that he himself may be privileged to see and share in the restoration of Jehovah’s people.
6. The main purpose of the Psalm is here stated;–the confession of the constant sin of Israel throughout its history. The acknowledgement that the nation does not deserve the mercy for which it prays is the primary condition of forgiveness and restoration to God’s favour.
7-12. The first instance of Israel’s sin; their unbelief and murmuring at the Red Sea.
13-15. A second instance of Israel’s sin, in murmuring for flesh
16-18. A third sin; jealousy of the authority of Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16).
19-23. A fourth sin; the worship of the calf (Exodus 32; Deuteronomy 9:8 ff.).
24-27. A fifth instance of Israel’s sin; their unbelief and cowardice on the return of the spies (Numbers 13:14).
28-31. A sixth instance; the sin of participating in the abominations of Moabite worship.
32, 33. A seventh sin; the murmuring at Meribah (Numbers 20:1-13). It is perhaps placed last as a climax, because in this case Moses was involved by Israel’s sin. The faith and patience of the leader who had endured so long gave way at last.
34-39. The continued disobedience of Israel even after the Entry into Canaan. Neglecting the command to exterminate the Canaanites they became infected by their abominations.
40-46. The alternations of chastisement, pardon, restoration, and relapse in the course of Israel’s history. As in Nehemiah 9:26 ff., the primary reference is to the period of the judges; but doubtless the verses are intended to be a summary survey of the characteristics of the whole course of Israel’s history, leading up to the prayer for restoration in Psalm 106:47.
47. This prayer is the point to which the long confession of national sin, from Psalm 106:6 onward, has been leading up. ‘We have sinned, often and grievously; we are bearing the just punishment of our sins; but we confess our guilt; Thy lovingkindness is inexhaustible, once more bring us to our own land, that we may fulfil the purpose of our calling.’
48. Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel,